18 Months!

It's hard to believe my girl is already 18 months old. What an incredibly fun age it is (as long as you have the patience :)).

This past month was a big one for her. She had ear tube surgery and can finally hear which lead to her vocabulary increasing quite a bit. Her current favorite words and sayings are no mama, mine, stop daddy, minneee, me, soap, whoa!, wow and boobieeesss. She recently decided that she was over the whole diaper thing and has been trying to potty train herself. We are following her lead as usual because once this girl makes up her mind there is no going back. She is the ultimate helper. If there is yard work to be done Dallas is there. If there is house cleaning to be done Dallas is there. If there is a baby sisters diaper that needs changing Dallas is there... saying ewwww stinky. We are loving this age and all everything it brings with it!

Name Game

The Baby Name Game...with both of our girls we had entirely different names picked out for them throughout the majority of my pregnancies and with both Kyle decided the week of that new names were needed and with both I agreed. Dallas was renamed four days before I was due over lunch with Kyle at Bandito's. Bliss was renamed two nights before while Kyle and I were sitting in our living room.

Dallas

After the chips and salsa were on the table and Kyle's fajitas ordered he looked at me and said I really want to change the name. I would love to name her Dallas. At first I looked at him like you are crazy! Dallas? No, I am not naming my baby girl Dallas. He looked at me again and said no really I think this should be her name. You see Dallas has a lot of meaning to us. It's where we first met, first fell in love and where we were married. It's where we came back to make and raise a family. As I sat there and thought about it I realized Dallas would be the perfect name for her. I knew this little girl was going to need a strong name to match the strong personality I felt she had. And once I laid eyes on her I knew Dallas was a perfect fit for her.

Bliss

Sitting on our computers discussing how little I had prepared for our newest bundle of joy Kyle looks up and says, I think we should change her name. Really? Again? But secretly I wasn't sold on her original name either and felt that she needed something different. She needed something feminine and sweet. So we were back at square one. Months before we had considered Bailey but couldn't find a name that we thought went well with it. Our friends Betsy & George had a little girl in November (we are actually birthday buddies!) and they originally named her Bliss but decided it didn't fit her and changed it to Walker Rose (so adorable!). Kyle looked at me with less than 48 hours until our little girl was going to be here and said what about Bailey Bliss.  I instantly loved it.  So immediately I texted Betsy to get their blessing (we didn't want to baby name steal in case they were planning on using it for another child). And with their stamp of approval we had a new name... Bailey Bliss Duke. 

Bliss 2 Months!

Bliss is an absolute doll. She has such a sweet temperament and is constantly "talking" and smiling. We could not be more in love! Bliss loves being held, she loves taking baths and having a warm blanket waiting for her once she is dried, she loves her big sister and smiles the biggest when she hugs and kisses her.

Thanks Precious for my adorable bloomers!!!

Dallas 17 Months!

Dallas is very independent these days. Taking our monthly shots was tougher than usual at 17.  After multiple tries we were able to get a few...

MORNING SHOT:

Mom, I don't wanna take a picture!

Just kidding!  Let's play chase!

EVENING SHOT:

Sweet girl

Dallas loves to take her right shoe (and sock) off-and-on, she loves carrying around her baby dolls and trying to pick up her baby sister, she loves watering the yard and picking weeds with dad, she loves throwing away everything she can find, she loves telling us when she has a "doo-doo" (haha), she loves feeding the dogs all on her own and playing with moms makeup. 

Busy

Life has been flying by at record speed lately.  Bliss is already 5 weeks old and becoming more interactive every day.  Dallas is as active as ever and learning new things daily. She moo's and quacks and definitely knows how to get a good laugh out of mom and dad. She comes home from school screaming BAABBBYYY now along with DAIZZZYYY. Bliss will just stare at her with a twinge of fear behind her eyes haha. We are working on getting our routine down and have found a pretty nice groove. Lots of snuggling in the mornings and running around like crazy in the evenings.

Wanting to play outside

Getting her medicine... her eardrums ruptured on Monday after battling ear infections for 3 months. She is such a trooper.

 Helping dad get ready for St. Patty's Day!

 Daddy & his Girls!

Dinner time at our house usually means Dallas in her highchair, Bliss in her swing and Daisy locked outside

1 Month!

It's hard to believe that a little over a month ago sweet baby Bliss came into our lives. Time seems to be flying by. Bliss has been very alert since she was born often looking at us with a wide eyed stare like we are crazy.  She coo's a lot usually followed by a smile. I couldn't decide which 1 Month picture to go with so I decided to include a few ;)

16 Months!

A lot of changes have happened for my little girl this last month. She welcomed her little sister, has about 10 new words and became "the biter" of her class (oops!). She is our wild woman who never stops and we wouldn't change that for the world. Life is more fun when she is around. Dallas currently loves: Singing the Itsy Bitsy Spider and If Your Happy and You Know It, The Wiggles, Barney, walking around in mommy's shoes, patting Bliss whenever she gets a chance, and playing anything outside.

Saturday was my first day being able to carry Dallas after my c-section. She's been a fixture at my side for 16 months. It felt so good to have her back on my hips and in my arms.

Farrah Fawcett?